NBWW post

Meet Igor Reyes of Nichols Brosch Wurst Wolfe in Coral Gables

Voyagemia Staff

Today we’d like to introduce you to Igor Reyes.

Igor, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My story is simple, got out of school and hit the ground running. I’ve been running ever since. Back in 1993, Miami wasn’t what it is today, and I have had the opportunity to watch it grow through several spurts. It’s a resilient city that comes out of every shift in culture as a winner and we’ve had to adapt to make sure our firm grew along with it. At NBWW I’ve found my creative family. I get the incredible privilege to come into the office work on some cutting-edge designs and we have an amazing team that jump on board to push the effort forward. There’s a fine balance at the firm where ideas are permitted to run “wild and free”, then we develop them so that the “wild and free” appear second nature. Coming up with great design ideas is the first of hundreds of steps. Making those great ideas practical and efficient is what we are up to.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
As smooth as I could have had it, I always find myself challenging the status quo to drive projects further than before. These self-imposed challenges are perceived as opportunities, so I thrive on them… entering the office each morning just dying to get at them. As technology changes the way we produce drawings and construct buildings, it also changes the way we tell the stories of our projects and that’s “my” part of the equation in the office. I’ve seen our story-telling go from hand renderings to computer renderings to computer animation to web-based animated presentations to augmented reality, and as of late, towards the whole YouTube and social media outlet platforms. All this while being situated in a vibrant city like Miami makes standing still the hardest challenge I have. We have been able to take all these moving parts and direct them so that we consistently produce unrivaled results.

Please tell us about Nichols Brosch Wurst Wolfe.
We are an architectural and planning firm that designs all kinds of projects, but our specialty is hospitality. Throughout our 50 years designing hotels we have come to know all the brands, and more importantly their evolution over the years. We have Hilton Hotel designs with the “big red sign” on the parapet walls, while our latest Hilton has a small indiscriminate sign by the entry door. As simple as that distinction may seem, it speaks worlds to our attitude towards hotel design and attention to context. We pride ourselves on knowing the paths our clients have taken, and that puts us in the ideal position to help them get to where they want to be. The greatest part of this knowledge and experience is that it is internal to our office and an integral part of our daily activities. John Nichols and Bruce Brosch can put their pens to paper and whatever squiggle comes out of the end will probably be as efficient and well thought out as a week’s worth of my deliberations.

Who else deserves credit – have you had mentors, supporters, cheerleaders, advocates, clients or teammates that have played a big role in your success or the success of the business? If so –who are they and what role did they plan / how did they help.
Credit is all around me. I simply wouldn’t be where I’m at without every single individual that has crossed my path. John and Bruce (the “N” and “B” of NBWW), have remained the wisdom that provides a foundation for all endeavors at our firm. With either of them in the room, each one of us feels more capable and confident, which in turn transfers over to our clients. John and Bruce also deserve credit for allowing some of the innovations to become infused with our production process, which has resulted in a very fertile and creative working environment. As far as creative and artistic influence, I’ll have to refer to the 3 summers of an internship with Tony Lopez at his sculpture studio. His relentless engagement with his pieces haunt me and my process to this day. He would generate, then break down, then generate again, and break again down as often as he needed to get the right expression. That process, while it may add stress, always extracts the best ideas and outcomes from everyone. Lastly, of course, my parents and the “work your ass off” attitude they instilled in me, often giving me the upper hand in a range of circumstances.